Canadians are well aware by now that we are in a bad debt situation, taking on far more than we should; and that it could get us into real trouble should interest rates rise and people find they can no longer make payments on those debts. But just where in the country does the most debt lie? And which demographic groups have the most debt? A new report from Statistics Canada has given us the answer to those questions.
The report done by Stats Canada analyzed only Canadians that currently have debt, not taking into consideration those that were debt-free. It also took its stats from 2009, so the numbers are sure to be slightly higher today in all categories. The report, released on Friday, showed that on average, Canadians carry $114,400 in debt per person – but that number changes drastically depending on a person’s geographic location in Canada, their education, their marital status, and their age.
Not surprisingly, location plays a huge role in how much debt a person carries. While many would think that Vancouver alone, with its high home prices and high cost of living, would make B.C. the province that carried the most debt on average per person, the Western province came in second, with an average of $155,500. The one province that held more debt than them was Alberta, where the average amount of debt per person was $157,700. What may also not be surprising to many is the fact that those in the Maritimes had the least amount of debt, carrying an average of only $69,300 per person. Quebec came in just slightly above them, holding an average of $78,900 in debt.
Interestingly, where people live in those locations also plays a part in the amount of debt they have. Because mortgage debt is one of the biggest, if not the biggest debt a person will have in their lifetime, homeowners in Canada carried an average of $161,200 “in all forms of debt,” meaning their first mortgage, second mortgage, HELOCs in Canada, and home equity loans. Renters on the other hand, only owe an average of $36,200 of debt per person.
With the high cost of tuition leaving many Canadians needing student loans to attend post-secondary education, it’s not a shock to learn that Canadians who attended university held an average of $145,400; while those who went to post-secondary school somewhere other than a university had slightly less debt per person, holding only $114,300. Those who did not attend school after high school was $90,900.
Older Canadians, those 65 years of age and older, have the least amount of debt, holding only $66,000 in debt per person; while those under the age of 45 carried the most debt with $129,200 – that’s a lot considering that this age group makes up nearly half of the country’s population. Another area in the life cycle that affects the amount of debt level Canadians carry is whether or not they are married and have children. Married couples with children hold the most amount of debt within this demographic, with $144,600 in debt; while single people without children carried only half that amount at $63,200. Single parents carry an average of $100,800 in debt.
With stats like these, it makes it easier for Canadians to find their own demographic, see how they’re doing when compared with national averages, and continue to try to pay down their debt and continue to fall below those national averages.
